The Swallow and the Sparrow 



mattresses tries to obtain aerial suspension, 

 a swinging house, the prerogative of weav- 

 ers and basket-makers well-versed in the art 

 of plaiting. And he succeeds. 



In the fork of a few branches he accumu- 

 lates everything suitable for his work that 

 he can pick up near a house: rags, scraps of 

 paper, ends of thread, flocks of wool, bits 

 of hay and straw, dry blades of grass, flax 

 dropped from the distaff, strips of bark 

 retted by lying long in the open; and of his 

 various gleanings, clumsily matted together, 

 he contrives to make a large, hollow ball 

 with a narrow opening in the side. It is 

 bulky to a degree, the thickness of the dome 

 having to be as good a defence against the 

 rain as the shelter of a tile would be; it is 

 very roughly constructed, without any at- 

 tempt at artistry; but, when all is said, it is 

 stout enough to last for a season. This is 

 how the Sparrow must have worked in the 

 beginning, when there was no hollow tree at 

 hand. Nowadays, that primitive art, too 

 costly in time and materials, is seldom prac- 

 tised. 



My house is shaded by two great plane- 

 trees; their branches reach the roof, on 

 which generations of Sparrows, too many 

 for the welfare of my cherries and my peas, 

 139 



